Published 9:50 pm, Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Interior of Ross Lodge after renovation. It is now being used as an executive conference center.
Photo: Seattle City Light

Interior of Ross Lodge after renovation. It is now being used as an...

Seattle City Light also noted its restoration of Gorge Inn, in Newhalem, shown here during renovations in on Oct. 6, 2012.
Photo: Joe Mabel/Wikimedia Commons

Seattle City Light also noted its restoration of Gorge Inn, in...

Here are some other honorees, starting with the state Department of Transportation and city of Seattle, for their rehabilitation of King Street Station.
Photo: JORDAN STEAD, SEATTLEPI.COM

Here are some other honorees, starting with the state Department of...

The state honored Ellensburg for acquiring the historic, endangered Geddis Building, in its downtown.
Photo: City Of Ellensburg

The state honored Ellensburg for acquiring the historic, endangered...

The state honored Sound Experience Aboard the Schooner Adventuress, for care, interpretation and promotion of the 100-year old Schooner Adventuress, which is a National Historic Landmark and was overhauled two years ago.
Photo: Elizabeth T. Becker, Seaport Photography

The state honored Sound Experience Aboard the Schooner Adventuress,...

"Before starting work on the historic Ross Lodge, Seattle City Light made sure that rehabilitation of the lodge would not damage sensitive archaeological resources in the project vicinity," the state Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation wrote in announcing the award. "The 75-year-old dormitory has been handsomely repurposed as an executive conference center after having been abandoned for over 20 years."

In a writeup about the award, City Light Chief of Staff Sephir Hamilton said: "This recognition highlights Seattle City Light's leadership in preservation work and demonstrates our efforts to make historic preservation a priority as the Nation's Greenest Utility."

Bernie O'Donnell, director of Utility Support Services, said: "This is an incredible achievement by many people who worked tirelessly and had the vision, passion and persistence to push forward and restore a building that would have been easy to give up on."

City Light also noted its recent rehabilitation of the Gorge Inn, the anchor building on old Main Street in Newhalem. Newhalem and Diablo are company towns in eastern Whatcom County, where City Light has power-generating dams.

Also in the City Light writeup, Gretchen Luxenberg, a cultural resources specialist with the National Park Service, said: "The utility is embracing stewardship of their unique cultural resources in a bold and thoughtful manner."

State Historic Preservation Officer Allyson Brooks also honored:

Archaeologist Lynn Larson, of Gig Harbor, Johnson Meninick, of the Yakama Tribe, and former Washington Trust for Historic Preservation Director Jennifer Meisner, of Seattle, for career achievement;

The state Department of Transportation and city of Seattle, for their much-documented rehabilitation of King Street Station;

Ellensburg, for acquiring the historic, endangered Geddis Building, in its downtown;

Tacoma, for a code amendment that calls for maintaining historic properties;

The Chehalis Tribe and Roslyn Cemetery Commission, for efforts to preserve historic cemeteries; and

Sound Experience Aboard the Schooner Adventuress, for care, interpretation and promotion of the 100-year old Schooner Adventuress, which is a National Historic Landmark and was overhauled two years ago.

The state plans to honor the award recipients during a ceremony in Olympia on May 13, during National Historic Preservation Month.